Jan Uddenfeldt wins innovation award

Technology Update Issue no. 3/2009

Dr. Jan Uddenfeldt, Senior Vice President and Senior Advisor of Technology to the Ericsson Group CEO, is the recipient of TechAmerica’s 2009 Innovator Awards for his contribution in the fields of 2G and 3G (HSPA) technologies.

The 2009 TechAmerica Innovator Awards honor innovators of technology representing seven industry segments. Especially noteworthy is that these awards are focused on the person rather than the innovation or company. Dr. Uddenfeldt won in the Telecom Equipment category.

“I am very pleased that our R&D efforts in GSM and 3G mobile systems are being acknowledged,” Dr. Uddenfeldt says. “This award also serves as proof of our growing visibility in Silicon Valley.”

Since 1959, the TechAmerica Innovator Awards and Benefit has also featured its highest honor, the David Packard Medal of Achievement, to recognize significant lifetime contributors and pioneers of the high-tech industry. This year's recipient is John W. Thompson, chairman of the board, Symantec Corporation.

About Dr. Uddenfeldt

Dr. Jan Uddenfeldt is one of the inventors and industry drivers of wireless GSM (2G) technology as well as mobile broadband (3G/HSPA) technology. Dr. Uddenfeldt has been with Ericsson since 1978. In 1985 he was appointed head of Research at Ericsson Radio Systems, and in 1990 he became Vice President of Research and Development, where he was responsible for Ericsson’s cellular radio products. In 1998, he was appointed CTO for the Ericsson Group with responsibility for Ericsson’s R&D activities worldwide. Since 2004, Dr. Uddenfeldt has served as Senior Vice President and Senior Advisor, Technology, to Ericsson Group CEO. In this position he chairs the Ericsson Research Board and the Ericsson Standardization Board. He is also responsible for technology strategies and for aligning technology with leading operators worldwide. In August 2008, Dr. Uddenfeldt relocated to San Jose, California with the aim of establishing research and technology cooperation with leading internet companies in the USA in order to realize converged mobile and fixed internet. To date, Dr. Uddenfeldt has established technology cooperation with major telecom operators in USA, China, Japan and Europe, including AT&T, ChinaMobile, NTT DoCoMo, Vodafone, and T-Mobile.

Recipients of the 2009 Innovator Awards

Category: Computer and Equipment
Recipient: Victor Shtrom, Chief Wireless Architect/Founder, Ruckus Wireless

Innovation: smart Wi-Fi

Category: Telecom Equipment
Recipient: Jan Uddenfeldt, Senior Vice President and Senior Technology Advisor to CEO, Ericsson
Innovation: 2G, 3G (HSPA) technology

Category: Consumer Electronics
Recipient: Stanley Yang, CEO, NeuroSky, Inc.
Innovation: mind-reading headset

Category: Electronic Components
Recipient: Balu Balakrishnan, President and CEO, Power Integrations, Inc.
Innovation: EcoSmart energy-efficiency technology

Category: Software
Recipients: Scott Schumacher, Chief Scientist, and Scott Ellard, CTO, Initiate Systems
Innovation: probabilistic search

Category: CleanTech
Recipient: Rob Mead, Chief Architect, advanced air traffic management, The Boeing Company
Innovation: tailored arrivals

Category: Internet
Recipients: Arthur R. Berrill, Vice President of Advanced Concepts and Technology, and Sherif Ahmed, Software Architect of Advanced Concepts and Technology, Pitney Bowes
Innovation: Pitney Bowes FireLocator